Water metering and reporting
As a water licence or works approval holder, you are responsible for metering your water usage and submitting regular readings to the Department for Environment and Water (DEW).
Meter read FAQs
The quickest and easiest way to submit a meter read is in mywater.
mywater allows you to manage licences, permits, and trade water in one place.
Please note the online meter read form has been disabled.
1. Visit mywater
2. Select the 'Sign up' button and follow the prompts.
3. Check your inbox for a confirmation email.
View full mywater FAQ's here.
Your responsibilities include:
- Installing and maintaining your meters in accordance with the South Australian Licensed Water Use Meter Specification.
- Reading and submitting your meter reads on time.
- Ensuring your metering equipment is not faulty.
- Actively monitoring your water use against your allocation by reading your meter.
- Not taking in excess of your water allocation at any time (including undertaking water trade if necessary).
To assist you in understanding your metering obligations, please refer to the following:
Before submitting, ensure you have:
• Your licence or works approval number.
• The exact name of the licence holder as it appears on official documents.
• Your meter serial number(s).
Check your licence or works approval to see how often you need to submit a self-read. It will be at least annually.
Annual meter reads: If your licence requires an annual read, read your meter between 1-14 July and submit by 31 July each year.
Quarterly meter reads: If your licence requires a quarterly read, read your meter and submit on the following dates each year:
- 1-14 October and submit read by end of October
- 1-14 January and submit read by end of January
- 1-14 April and submit read by end of April
- 1-14 July (end of year read) and submit read by end of July.
If you are required to meter your water usage (as per the conditions of your licence), you must tell us when you have:
- a faulty meter
- installed and validated a meter
- revalidated a meter
- repaired a meter
- tested a meter
relocated or permanently removed a meter.
The Meter Notification Form can be used to notify us of the above events/activities. The Meter Notification Form (combined with the validation certificate) can be found here: (PDF version and Word version). Alternatively, you may notify us using the mywater customer portal.
If you have an active mywater login and user profile and have chosen ‘email’ as your preferred method of communication, you will receive an email from mywater confirming that your meter read has been received and submittedentered into our new system.
If you don’t have an active mywater login and user profile yet, you can call your regional water licensing office.
If your meter is faulty or has stopped working, you are required to notify DEW as soon as possible. You must then undertake to have your meter repaired or replaced within 28 days and notify DEW using the Meter Notification Form (PDF version and Word version).
If your meter is faulty and therefore meter readings are unreliable, other methods will be used to determine your water usage, as determined under the ‘Notice of Assessment of Quantity of Water Taken when Meter Readings are Not Used’.
The South Australian Licensed Water Use Metering Policy requires all licensed water use to be metered, resulting in approximately 95% of water take being metered. However, in limited low risk circumstances, exemption from metering may be granted (for example stock and domestic water use or to permit water use from multiple sources to be recorded through a single meter).
Licence holders can apply for an exemption or flexible metering arrangement.
Details about how exemptions work in your area are outlined in local meter implementation plans.
If an exemption is granted:
- Water use is estimated instead of measured
- In accordance with the Notice of Assessment of Quantity of Water Taken when Meter Readings are Not Used, the amount used each year is assumed to be equal to your allocation
For example, if your allocation is 50 ML, then 50 ML is counted as used.
This can affect carryover and allocation trades/transfers.
Further information
- Fact sheet for Validators
- Fact sheet: Overview of National Metering Standards
- Water metering policies and legislation
- How to read your meter fact sheet
Meter implementation plans
- River Murray Prescribed Watercourse
- Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges Prescribed Water Resources Area
- Western Mount Lofty Ranges Prescribed Water Resources Area
- Barossa Prescribed Water Resources Area
- Clare Valley Prescribed Water Resources Area
- Marne Saunders Prescribed Water Resources Area
- Mallee and Peake, Roby and Sherlock Prescribed Wells Areas
- Southern Basins and Musgrave Prescribed Wells Areas
- Central Adelaide Prescribed Wells Area
Contact us
Please contact the appropriate water licensing office if you have any further questions regarding your metering obligations.
| Contact Details | Prescribed Water Resources managed by this office |
Mount Gambier DEW.LCWaterLicensing@sa.gov.au | Tatiara, Padthaway, Lower Limestone Coast, Tintinara-Coonalpyn and Morambro Creek and Nyroca Channel prescribed watercourse |
Berri DEW.Waterlicensingberri@sa.gov.au | River Murray, Angas Bremer, Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges, Mallee, Marne Saunders, Peake Roby and Sherlock, Clare Valley, Barossa Valley, Eyre Peninsula |
Adelaide DEWWaterLicensing@sa.gov.au | McLaren Vale, Central Adelaide, Northern Adelaide Plains, Western Mount Lofty Ranges, Far North |
